Resident urges accountability in public housing and schools; proposes methane capture from wastewater

Gary Lochers, who identified himself as a resident of Willow Canyon Drive, used his public-comment time to raise three concerns: accountability at public-housing sites, disciplinary practices in the Port Huron-area school district and opportunities to capture methane from county wastewater plants and convert waste to renewable fuels.

Lochers said a recent three-week involvement with a housing commission left him concerned about conditions and lack of community cleanup and leadership. ‘‘We’re basically babysitting adults,’’ he said, adding that he wants county action to avoid multi-generational reliance on welfare.

On school discipline, Lochers argued that students who defend themselves after prolonged bullying receive the same punishment as the aggressor, and he said the district’s disciplinary approach fails students with autism and others who need differentiated responses.

Turning to environmental opportunity, Lochers said he observed methane flaring at the Marysville wastewater plant and urged county staff to explore methane capture and biosolid conversion programs used elsewhere to run vehicles or produce bio-crude. ‘‘We can take waste. We can create jobs. We can create revenue,’’ he said, describing programs in other jurisdictions that capture methane to power buses and produce fuel from solids.

Why it matters: the comments touch three distinct county-related issues — housing management, school discipline (a district matter) and county wastewater operations — and call for county engagement or exploration of technical solutions.

The board received the comments during public comment; commissioners did not take immediate policy action on these remarks at the meeting.